Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-06-15-Speech-4-172"
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"en.20060615.27.4-172"2
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"Mr President, Commissioner, in six months, or in a year at most, we will have a reorganised wine market, and I would therefore like to examine our current topic in the light of the general developments that have taken place over the last few years and that will continue over the years to come.
First of all, I would emphasise – and in this I am practically diametrically opposed to the previous speaker – that, when it comes to wine, the real decisions are made by the consumer. We are not forced to drink wine, and we are under no obligation to choose any particular type of wine: it is ultimately up to the consumer to decide.
So, what has the consumer done over the past few years? We have witnessed a fall in the consumption of table wines and an increase in the consumption of quality wines. We have also seen a considerable increase in the number of consumers and, if you have read the press recently regarding the decisions and wishes of China, you will be aware that, within the next ten years, we will have millions of new wine drinkers in the world.
In addition, we have seen, again at global level and particularly from the new vineyards in the New World, the appearance of new flavours that match the consumers' requirements. All of that has happened over the same period of just 20 years, whilst consumers in France have halved their consumption of wine.
It is therefore clear that there have been many major developments regarding wine consumption. Europe needs to be well positioned in this global market. I think we are all agreed that we need to act to preserve the globally-acknowledged high quality of our major wines from Spain, Italy and France – and I myself come from Champagne – in order to protect both their quality and their brand image throughout the world. At the same time, however, European viticulture needs to adapt to the needs of consumers all over the world.
That, ladies and gentlemen, is why, in view of the changing tastes of our consumers, and given the disappearance of certain consumers and the appearance of others, I think it is quite natural to have the option of using these oak chippings in the production of European wine, provided, of course, that this option is not an obligation, that it is exercised within the framework of our various regulations and, finally, that all Member States may impose restrictive conditions on their use.
In conclusion, let us not forget that, on our continent, in our 25 Member States, several million jobs, perhaps five million, depend on the production of wine, and that the sector has a turnover of EUR 17 billion – almost exactly the same as the wheat sector and significantly greater than the sugar sector, which is four times smaller. For all of these reasons, we need to adapt to the demands of our consumers."@en1
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